Afcon 2023 started on Saturday with an important victory for Ivory Coast against Guinea Bissau. The defending champion Senegal enters the competition on Monday, but El Hadji Diouf, legend of the Teranga Lions, supports a second team during this competition.
Senegal has officially put its title on the line. Aliou Cissé’s men who want to repeat the feat of 2021 remain quite cautious. El Hadji Diouf has always made it known that Senegal is the best team in Africa, and therefore, they are favorites for Afcon 2023.
“Senegal is the best team at the moment. It’s not a burden to be expected, I think it’s a good pressure. We have the best team. We have the stars of the moment and the players who have fun on the pitch and who will give a lot of pleasure. I think that’s what we’re here for. We know we are the team to beat but before passing us on we have to wake up very early,” said El Hadj Diouf.
But the Senegalese legend and present in the delegation of the Lions of Teranga will support a second team at Afcon 2023. In an interview given to the Algerian press, El Hadji Diouf said all the good things he thinks of the Fennecs that they carried in his heart since his childhood.
“It’s always a pleasure to speak with my African and especially Algerian brothers. there are Algerian players who made my childhood like Rabah Madjer. I have quite a few friends like Rafik Saifi. All these people with whom we share the same generation, and Algeria fascinated me with its beautiful game, this is why Algeria will always remain in my heart,” said El Hadji Diouf.
For El Hadji Diouf, Algeria will surprise at Afcon 2023
El Hadji Diouf thinks that Algeria will shine at Afcon 2023. The double African golden ball believes in this Djamel Belmadi team which is full of exceptional players like Riyad Mahrez whom he loves to follow.
For him, if the Fennecs supporters do not put pressure on them as they are used to, Mahrez and his teammates will go very far at this Afcon 2023.
“Algeria has a very good team, with a passionate coach and very high level players, like my little brother Riyad Mahrez. It’s a very homogeneous team. But as you know, the problem of Algeria. If the supporters are aware and do not put pressure on the team like in 2019 in Egypt, I think Algeria will be able to have a very good Afcon,” added El Hadji Diouf.
Algeria, an aging team but still formidable
2019 African champion with a record of invisibility, Algeria then showed signs of weakness notably at Afon 2021 in Cameroon and during the qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup where they were taken out by Cameroon in Blida.
But Djamel Belmadi, national coach of the Fennecs, managed to turn things around and Algeria was impressive during the Afcon 2023 qualifiers. With some dual nationals who joined the den like Houssem Aouar, Algeria is today a hybrid of experience and youth. Which works very well and gives the feeling that this team is built to repeat the feat of 2019 in Egypt.
They prepared in Togo, in order to acclimatize before Afcon 2023 and the feelings are positive. Algeria is housed in Group D alongside the Stallions of Burkina Faso, Angola and Mauritania. It’s a group well within the reach of Djamel Belmadi’s men.
Do you think Algeria is capable of winning this Afcon 2023?
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